Pumped.

Tomorrow is a REALLY big day.

The Thompson family will be arriving :)

Dusty and I are so excited - we have been talking about it almost daily since the flights were booked months ago.

I get to see these little boys tomorrow!

I am one happy girl :)

It's going to be so nice to have family here.

Thanks for coming to visit...it really means a lot to me.

Can't wait for you to get here!

I really really want a dog.

We have had the pleasure of dogsitting this week.

Her name is Abby Singer...

and she is a Jack Russell.

We have a blanket just for her...and she wouldn't have it any other way.

I swear she understands everything that is going on around her.

I have enjoyed having her around this week for company, and I like to think she has enjoyed spending her days with me as well.

We go for walks, I give her the occasional treat, she protects me when someone comes to the door...and by protect, I mean barks SO unbelievably loud and doesn't stop until they go away...I'm not gonna lie, it's not my favorite thing about her.

She sleeps a lot...but practically with one eye open at all times so she is always aware of what's going on around her...

She likes attention in the mornings, but that's the only time she needs it.

She will follow you everywhere around the house in the a.m. until you sit and give her her "morning rubdown" and then the following comes to an end.

Except for when it's storming outside.  Then she needs you ALL day...and sitting next to you is not sufficient - she must be ON your lap. 

Anyways, enough about Abby Singer...

...the point is, dogs make me happy and I think I might just need one :)

Saturday Beach Day

Saturday was the perfect day to go to the beach, so that is just what we did.

We packed our chairs and umbrella for the adventure...

 Sarah - you will have to let Amelia know I use the beach bag she gave me ALL of the time :)

Dusty's mom gave me the purple bag as a present - love the color.

While Dusty and Gray played in the water, I went for a walk along the beach with camera in tow - the weather was perfect.

When I returned from my walk, Dusty was giving Gray what was supposed to be duck feet and hands.

and a collage from our day...

We can't wait for our visitors in October!

I hope the pictures from the beach got you a little more excited :)

Misc.

We scored at a garage sale recently and found this frame:

We paid $5 for it - I ♥ garage sales.

I only put one coat of white paint on it because I wanted it to look a little rough around the edges and have some wood showing through.

The size print (I think it was 10 x 13) we needed for the frame wasn't available at Target or Walmart, so I ordered it online at Winkflash.  I highly recommend ordering your prints from here - great quality and it ends up being quite a bit cheaper than going to Target or Walmart.

*Side Note: Dusty had set the camera up for this photo while we were spending time at the marina and then used the timer...I like it :)

Also, something that has come in really handy...

Thrift store frame for a dollar, put cardstock in the frame and now we have a cheap dry erase board :)

We use it for grocery lists, things to do, notes for each other, etc.

Clothespin Magnets

Last week I made clothespins into decorative magnets.  And it was fun.

After making a few, I had a hard time stopping.

They were easy and I like how they look.

I ended up making quite a few, so family, you will be getting some for Christmas :) 

Clothespin Magnet Tutorial:

Supplies:

• clothespins
• x-acto knife
• cardstock
• mod podge
• foam brush
• magnets

1. Gather clothespins

 2. In order to make it easier, I took one clothespin apart to use for tracing when cutting.

 3.  Use an X-acto knife to cut the cardstock and use the clothespin you took apart to trace.

 4.  Put a coat of mod podge on the clothespin and then put the cut out paper on top of the mod podge.

5.  Let dry and then apply a coat on top of the paper. 

6.  Let dry and repeat two more times with the application of the mod podge.

 7.  Place the magnet on the other side of the clothespin.

 The finished product:

 You can use them on the fridge to hold a picture, or anything for that matter...

Or when your kids bring home artwork from school, you can put the new one on top each time to help de-clutter the fridge...

 I gave away my first set this weekend to Dusty's mom.  Her favorite color is purple so these are the ones I gave her:

Do you like?

Car wash day

You know those days when it's really really hot out and miserable, but you're tired of being inside?

Dusty proclaims those car washing days - I've recently noticed this trend & I'm definitely okay with it.

So, him and Gray put on their swim trunks, fill up the buckets with soapy water, and get to work on the cars.

These are some pictures of Gray from one of those days...

 Showing his muscles...

How cute are these pictures?  I love them.  Dusty was the one behind the lens on these.

Did you notice the clean, shiny cars in the background? :) 

We love rainy days.

This weekend I experienced my first tropical storm - lots & lots of rain, wind, thunder...kind of fun. 

Although I do admit I checked the weather constantly yesterday...I don't know what to expect here, so I was a little nervous.

Anyways, we ran some errands in the morning and then locked ourselves in for the day - it was nasty outside, so staying in all day was the perfect thing to do.

We decided this would be a great weekend to do some house projects.

Dusty got to work on painting Gray's room...and of course, Gray wanted to help.  What four year old boy wouldn't?

Dusty basically gave him free reign, so after snapping a few pictures, I had to walk away from the situation.  Those kind of things stress me out a little, but not Dusty - it's all about the memories and experiences, not the messes.  I am trying to get better and not stress about the little things - I think I'm making progress :)

 Gray liked to take a swing at it.  As you can see in the above picture, he would bring the roller back behind his head and then swing it full force at the wall...wonderful.

Admiring his handy work.

So, the result: just a little paint in the hair, paint on the pajamas, uneven painting on the walls (lots of coats in one spot), and LOTS of fun for Mr. Gray :)

After all of the hard work, it was time to make brownies.

Gray loves baking things - especially cake and brownies.

I think the excitement is obvious on his face.

 and of course, the best part of all is licking the batter...

We had a fun, productive rainy day...and according to the weather channel, we have many more rainy days ahead. 

And I feel really good about it.

We ♥ rainy days at this house.